Some believe that the fractional breakdown of Native blood over generations was factored into the federal govenment's plan from the beginning, a sort of statistical extermination. "The one-quarter blood quantum was a criteria that federal officials devised in the early 1900s to reduce the number of Indians and save themselves some money," says University of Minnesota Professor David Wilkins, an expert in federal Indian policy." And by then, most tribes had been so brow-beaten they weren't in a position to challenge those criteria."
If the blood-percentage system was indeed part of an insidious plan to eradicate the Native American, it is slowly having the desired effect. Based on current requirements, most tribes will have no new eligible members in 50 years, and many will cease to exist within a century.
-Blood Quantum A complicated system that determines tribal membership threatens the future of American Indians by Andrea Appleton High Country News January 19, 2009 Vol.41 No.1 Pg.16
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